
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, January 7, 1994                   TAG: 9401080015
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: WENDI GIBSON RICHERT
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

BA-BA-BA-BAD COMMERCIALS

You don't watch TV for the commercials. Nonetheless, you remember them long after you've channel surfed elsewhere. And many of them do nothing to entice you to buy their products. Instead, you'd rather boycott the company forever. All because you hated that 60-second commercial.

Recently, the Wall Street Journal published its picks for the ``lead balloon campaigns'' of the year.

Topping the list was Burger King's wanna-be-hip commercial with MTV personality Dan Cortese. You know the one. He shrieked, ``I love this place!'' America declared, ``Hated it!'' - and the No. 2 ranked fast-food chain fired its fourth ad agency in five years.

Diet Coke also ditched its ad agency when the 12-year-old ``Just for the taste of it'' slogan was retired in favor of ``Taste it all. One Awesome Calorie.'' A bit too saccharine for us. The lesson, the WSJ says: ``If it ain't broke, don't fix it.''

And the commercial guaranteed not to whet your appetite in '93: Fast-food chain Roy Rogers' picture of two hunters sitting by a campfire talking about the next day's bear hunt. One says bear tastes just like chicken. Enter the bears, exit the hunters. New scene: two bears sitting by a campfire. One marvels at how their recent meal tasted just like chicken.

Our own vote for the commercial flop of the year wasn't included on the WSJ list. ``Ch- Ch- Ch- Chia Pet!'' just didn't do anything to stimulate our innate desire to grow poodle plants.

by CNB